Lhasa
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- This is about the capital city of Tibet. For other meanings of Lhasa, see Lhasa (computing), Lhasa de Sela (singer) or Lhasa apso (dog breed).
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Lhasa (pop. 200,000); Tibetan: ལྷ་ས, Template:Zh-stp), sometimes called Llasa, is the traditional capital of Tibet and the capital of the Tibetan Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. It is also the traditional home of the Dalai Lama.
Lhasa means "Place of the Gods", although in Old Tibetan documents it is written Rasa either 'place of the goat' or 'place of a courtyard'. Its altitude is approximately 3,650 meters (12,000 ft) above sea level.
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Administration
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Administratively speaking, the City of Lhasa consists of 1 district and 7 counties. The district, called Chengguan District (Tibetan: ??? , Template:Zh-stp), contains the actual urban area of Lhasa. The seven counties are Lhünzhub, Damxung, Nyêmo, Qüxü, Doilungdêqên, Dagzê, and Maizhokunggar.
History
Legend has it that the second Tibetan emperor Songtsen Gampo (Srong-brtsan-sgam-po) made Lhasa his capital. But contemporary documents (e.g. The Old Tibetan Annals) show that the empire was ruled from a moving capital.
In the first half of the 20th century several western explorers made celebrated journeys to the city, including Francis Younghusband, Alexandra David-Néel and Heinrich Harrer. For its subsequent history, see Tibet.
Geography
Economy
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People
According to PRC statistics, 87% of the city's population consist of ethnic Tibetans. These figures do not include members of the People's Liberation Army nor the considerable population of unofficial unregistered Han Chinese migrants, and the Tibetan Governmnet-in-Exile and other Tibetan groups assert that because of this ethnic Tibetans are now a minority in Lhasa. Due to increased liberalization of economy, greater freedom in movement and various government incentives, thousands of Han Chinese from China proper have settled in the area, and play an active role in Lhasa's economy.
Culture
Tourism
The Potala Palace is a UNESCO World Heritage Site; other important buildings are the Jokhang, the Norbulingka, Drepung monastery and Sera monastery.
A 1,080 km (670 mile) Qinghai-Tibet Railroad to Lhasa is currently under construction.
References
- Das, Sarat Chandra. 1902. Lhasa and Central Tibet. Reprint: Mehra Offset Press, Delhi. 1988.
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